Fastener for pocket savings or coin banks.



i. J. KUSEL.

FASHNER FOR POCKET SAVINGS 0: com BANKS.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 6.1916.

Patented Dec. 17,1918.

Ina/6 Baa???" J' ffzwl UNITED STATES PATENT onnrcn.

ISIDOR J. KUSEL, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGN OR TO STRONGHART COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

FASTENER FOR POCKET SAVINGS OR COIN BANKS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 17, 1918.

Application filed December 6, 1916. Serial No. 135,373.

To all who-m it may concern:

Be it known that I, ISIDOB 'J. KUsEL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Fasteners for Pocket Savings or Coin Banks, of which the following is a full, clear, concise, and exact description, reference being had to the accmpanying drawings, forming a part of this specification.

My invention relates to fasteners for pocket savings or coin banks.

Prominent objects of the invention are to provide a simple and advantageous construction of pocket coin or savings banks; to arrange for the ready locking of the bank, so as to prevent its being opened by unauthorized persons; to provide for the easy unlocking and opening of the bank by means of a key in the possession of the proper Or anthorized person; to simplify the construction of the bank and locking mechanism and arrange for the simple, easy and inexpensive construction of the same; and to secure the foregoing and other desirable results in a simple and expeditious manner.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a side elevation of a bank embodying my present invention;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the same on an enlarged scale;

F ig. 3 is a plan view on the same scale as Fig. 1 of a bank with the cover removed;

Fig. 4 is a plan view on the same scale as Fig. 3 of the cover of the bank, showing the interior of the same; and

Fig. 5 is a cross section taken on line 5-5 in Fig. 3 on an enlarged scale,-but with the side walls omitted.

The bank shown comprises a body portion 1, and a top or cover 2, the latter having a wide flange 3, which extends well down within the sides of the bottom or body portion 1. The top 2 is meant to be locked n0rmally in closed position upon the body 1, but is also to be bodily removed or sepa-v rated therefrom so as to permit the opening of the bank to allow the removal of the coins or other contents thereof. To such end the body 1 is provided with a clip 4, having a hooked end 5, and the top 2 is provided with an aperture 6 through which the end portion 5 of the clip 4 may be passed so as to cause an engagement between said hook 5 and the shoulder 7 formed by the lower end of the portion 8 of the metal band or flange 3 on said top 2. This forms an engagement or locking arrangement for one end of the bank. The cli it is conveniently iade of stamped metal bent or stamped to the proper shape and is desirably secured to the bottom 1 by means of eyelets 10, which pass through said clip and also through the sheet metal 11, forming the body portion of said bottom 1. One or more layers 12, of material such as celluloid, is or are preferably located outside of the layer 11 of metal, so that the outer ends of the eyelets 10 are covered and thereby concealed. At its other end the bottom 1 is also provided with a bracket 14, the lower ends of which are extended in a crosswise man ner and fitted against the surface of the bottom 1 so as to form a foot for said bracket, said flat portions 15 being secured to the member 11 by means of eyelets 16. Bell-crank levers 17 are mounted upon the rear upstanding portion 14? of the bracket 14 and pivotally secured thereto by means of eyelets 18, there being two such levers 17 arranged opposite one another with their arms 19 extending toward one another, as shown in Fig. 5. The upper ends of the levers17 are provided with hooked ends 20 and a spring 21 is secured to the member 11 by one of the eyelets 16, a free end of which engages the two associated arms 19 of said bell-cranks and tends to keep said arms in an elevated or raised position. In this position the arms 17 are forced outwardly, as shown in full lines in Fig. 5. When the arms 19 are pressed downwardly against this spring 21, of course the arms 17 will be retracted, as shown in dotted lines in said figure. A key 22 is adapted to fit in an aperture 23 in the flange 3 and bottom 1 and to fit also in apertures in the two upstanding members 14 and 14 of the bracket 14, said key being provided with a side projecting portion 22 which will engage the arms 19 when the key is so inserted and will cause said arms to be moved or swung downwardly when said key is turned, so as to bring the projecting portion 22 into contact with the arms 19. This causes the bellcranks to be swung into the dotted position shown in Fig. 5, which may be called the unlocking position.

The top 2 is provided with a clip 25, having an aperture 26 into which the hooked ends .20 of the bell-cranks 17 may enter. This clip is conveniently secured to the top 2 by means of eyelets 27. Then the arms 17 are in the locking or full-line positions in'Fig. 5, the hooks 20 will engage the ends of the aperture 26 in the clip 25, and thereby cause a locking engagement between said hooks 20 and clip 25, and cover 2 to the bottom 1, as shown in Flg. 2. When the key is inserted into the end of the bank through the aperture 23, and the bell-cranks 17 swung thereby to the dotted position shown in Fig. 5, the hooks 20 will be moved toward one another and thereby be disengaged from the clip 25, whereupon the cover 2 will be unlocked and may be separated from the body 1. This accordingly permits the easy locking and unlocking of the bank. When the end of the bank containing this locking mechanism is unlocked and opened, the other end of the bank may be also opened by disengaging the clip r from the member 8, and thus the cover 2 may be removed entirely.

T he key 22 may be in the possession of an employee of a banking institution, so that the bank can be unlocked only when brought to such banking institution, whereupon the contents will be removed and placed to the credit of the party owning the bank, who is supposed to have an account with the banking institution.

It will be seen that all of the locking parts may be stamped out of sheet metal and then assembled, thereby permitting the banks to be made rapidly and in great quantity at very low prices.

It will be understood that changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

\Vhat I claim is:

1. A bank having a locking mechanism comprising a bracket having two upstanding portions separated from one another, a pair of hell cranks pivotally mounted to one of said upstanding portions between the same Sonics or this patent may be obtained for her y the and said other upstanding portion, the ends of one set of arms of said bell cranks being provided with hooks and the other set of arms being extended toward one another and arranged side by side with flush surfaces, said last mentioned arms being alike in the two bell cranks, and a key adapted to pass through an aperture in one of said upstanding bracket portions and to fit into an aperture in the other of said upstanding portions, said key being provided with a side projection adapted to engage the flush surfaces of said bell crank arms and actuate said bell cranks, and locking devices cooperating with the hooked ends of said bell cranks. V

' 2. A bank of the character described, having separable top and bottom members, a bracket member 14 secured to the bottom member and having an upstanding portion, bell-cranks 17 pivotally mounted upon the upstanding portion of said bracket, the upper ends of said bell-cranks extending above the top of said bracket and being provided with hooks, the other ends of said bell-cranks extending toward one another,

said bank and the bracket being provided with apertures for a key, and said extending arms of said bell-cranks position to be acted upon by a key entering said apertures, a strip spring 21 secured to the base portion of said bracket and eX- tending upwardly and acting against the under sides of said bell-crank arms, and a clip 25 on the top of said bank, said clip being provided with an aperture 26 adapted to receive the hooked ends of said bellcranks and having end portions adapted to serve as shoulders for engaging said ends.

In witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe my name this 15th day of November, A. D.,

ISIDOR J. KUSEL.

Witnesses A. L. JONES, HAZEL A. Jones.

five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Eatents,

Washington, D. e.

being located in' 

